The present invention relates to a method of making a shearfoil for dry shavers.
Dry shavers, i.e. electrically operated shavers, have one or more movable blades or cutters. Direct contact of these blades or cutters with the skin of a user must be prevented for reasons of safety and comfort. Therefore, such dry shavers are provided with a very thin--usually metallic--foil which spans the blades or cutters and is provided with a great number of openings through which the beard hair of a user can extend into contact with the moving blades or cutters. These foils are known in the art as shearfoils.
Much thought has been given in the past to the manufacture of these shearfoils because they are a decisive element in the effectiveness of the shaver. Evidently, the shearfoils must be as thin as possible, since the distance from the user's skin at which a beard hair will be cut off by the cutters, depends directly upon the thickness of the shearfoil.
However, there are also other functions which the shearfoil performs. Thus, appropriate shearfoil design will make it possible for the shearfoil to tension the skin of a user as the shaver is moved over the skin, thereby erecting the beard hair and facilitating its entry through the shearfoil apertures. This, evidently, contributes to the quality of the shave which can be otained with the dry shaver.
An advantageous shearfoil construction for this purpose has been proposed in German published application (DOS) No. 1,957,551. The shearfoil which is there disclosed, is provided on its outer (skin-contacting) surface with small protuberances which are arranged proximal to the apertures and which cause a user's skin to be pulled taut as the dry shaver moves over it, thereby erecting the beard hairs which can then more readily enter into the apertures.
Heretofore, this shearfoil could be produced only by mechanical manufacturing methods, which has the disadvantage that a close-tolerance production in large series and at economically acceptable cost is not possible.